mjz@texhrc.UUCP (Michael Zeitlin) (03/14/90)
Does anybody know of an SGI annual user's group meeting?
If none exists, how about trying to organize one so we
can meet each other and interact with SGI on a more
"personal" basis...
I have been to SUN's user group meetings and
they were quite informative....
any comments? out there....zombie@voodoo.UUCP (Mike York) (03/19/90)
In article <408@texhrc.UUCP> mjz@texhrc.UUCP (Michael Zeitlin) writes: > > Does anybody know of an SGI annual user's group meeting? > > If none exists, how about trying to organize one so we > can meet each other and interact with SGI on a more > "personal" basis... > On page 15 of the winter 1989 Iris Universe there was a side bar calling for volunteers to help start an SGI User Group. Having taken a fair amount of abuse as part of DECUS leadership in varying capacities over the years, I thought "What the heck, let's do it again!" I called up and volunteered. I was invited to an organizational meeting at last year's NCGA in Philadelphia. I can't find my notes from the meeting, but I recall there being 8 people present, including Mark Compton and Neil Harrington (this name may be wrong, it's from memory) from SGI. Here is an exerpt from my trip report: IRIS User Group In the Winter, 1989, issue of the "IRIS Universe" Silicon Graphics announced that an official IRIS User Group was being formed with an organizational meeting to be held at NCGA. Mike York was invited to participate in this meeting which included individuals from Silicon Graphics, Wavefront, CDC, the U.S. Government, and educational institutions. Most of the people attending had prior experience with other user groups. Oddly enough, there was almost immediate agreement on the long term goals for an IRIS User Group: Establish an annual conference for IRIS users, independent of existing conferences. Continue Birds-of-a-feather (BOF) sessions at existing conferences for SGI users. Provide a place for "naive" new users (those with little computer experience that are acquiring Personal IRIS's) to go for help. Be sure the IRIS User Group provides a home for both graphics and non-graphics users for SGI equipment. It is recognized that with the introduction of SGI file servers there will be more users who are not directly interested in graphics. Provide input to SGI for new product development. Publish a bug list on a regular basis. Publish a newsletter. It was recognized that a "critical mass" of users are needed to get a user group started. In order to start collecting interested users, SGI will investigate setting up a bulletin board system. The BBS will allow users to dial in and get bug reports, down load source code, and communicate with SGI engineers and other users. It is hoped that the BBS will be online by early fall, with the user group established sometime in the summer of 1990. I have not heard anything since then. I sent mail to Mark Compton a few weeks ago, but have not yet received a reply. Anybody at SGI know anything about this? -- Mike York | "I want to embrace you, but Boeing Computer Services | first, I have to satisfy (206) 234-7724 | my sense of moral outrage" uw-beaver!ssc-vax!voodoo!zombie | -Roger Rabbit